A Fairy Tale Must Be Told
by michellewritesfics
Summary: He waited. Then he quit. Now that the Doctor's back, he'll make sure revenge will be given. Given to him and his pesky companions. Wholock. Alternate universe.
1. The Promise and the Game

He promised. He promised he would get him somewhere safe. Take him on adventures. He said they would travel the stars in that spaceship of his. Get away from his parents. But he didn't live up to his promise. He _lied_. He lied to him. A dirty little lie that he believed in. Moriarty believed in very little things. One thing he believed in was this mediocre promise. This promise was made by the Doctor, this wonderful man with a spaceship. He told him so many fantastic things, even if the Doctor didn't go into details about it. The Doctor's voice alone spoke all the extravagant things that he proposed. And he lied. Lied all about it. He lied to James Moriarty. A tiny promise that sparked hope in a 10-year-old child. It ended in disappointment, anger, and a lust for revenge.

What hurt the most was that the Doctor didn't come back for him. It was like he had forgotten all about his promise. All about him.

A bunch of other feelings overcame Moriarty. He never felt so much anger for someone. Not his mom, not his dad, hell, not even that older kid that stole his lunch all during primary school. He never felt so abandoned. So lonely. And so depressed.

If the Doctor didn't remember him, then Moriarty will make him remember. The Doctor _will_ remember James Moriarty. Then he'll see. He'll see what leaving someone had caused them to become. It's not little Jimmy anymore. That title dropped long ago. It's James Moriarty, consulting criminal. Only one in the world.

And the Doctor will not only remember Moriarty, but he will learn to fear him. Just as Moriarty learned to hate the Doctor. He'll weep for the loss of innocence in little Jimmy, he'll be in awe at the darkness in Jim's heart, and most of all, the Doctor will experience fright when he hears James' name. He will run and hide in fear that Moriarty will track him down. And that's what Moriarty wanted. He wanted to see the Doctor become inferior to him. Become a squirming little maggot. And all this stemmed from hate. That hate branched out from love. But love and admiration for the Doctor was gone. Long gone. Hate and vain occupied Moriarty's body. It ran through his veins, it pumped his heart. It gave him life.

Moriarty would not rest until he confronted the Doctor. He would not die until he saw him again.

He needed to do something to get closer to the Doctor. So he made a plan. Moriarty placed hidden cameras all over London. In the streets, in buildings, everywhere. All this, in search for the Doctor. Then, in 2005, he found him. He found his beloved alien friend. But not as the man he had met years ago, he had a different face. Of course, the Doctor had told him that he was an alien with a blue box, and Moriarty wasn't surprised to witness this. In fact, he was interested. Completely intrigued with the biology of the Doctor and his kind.

It had to be started. It just had to. The Doctor wouldn't, so Moriarty took the first move. The Doctor had taken a young girl as his companion. If Moriarty couldn't be his companion, then he might as well disturb the Time Lord's friend's perspective. Shift it from wanting to visit other planets and galaxies to fearing the Doctor and eventually have him arrested. Or better yet, murdered.

Yes. That was his plan. Corrupt his friends. Then him. Even if the Doctor would change his face and his traveling buddies, Moriarty wouldn't give up. He refused to. He'll make the Doctor's companions be afraid of him. Then he'll go for the kill. He'll come looking for him, get him, and entangle the Doctor in his web, just as he did with so many other people.

The game between the Doctor and James Moriarty was on.


	2. The Wolf Ate Her Up

The Doctor was recovering from his recent regeneration. And Moriarty knew this. Of course, Moriarty had to thank the cameras. It was all their doing. Nothing could have been hiding from Moriarty. He would see everything. Every little thing.

Moriarty sent a video to the flat, indicating that Rose had rented it from a video store. Jackie wasn't very into Rose's things - especially not a little thing such as a video - and was trying to help her daughter take care of the Doctor. Jackie set the video on Rose's bed and left the flat to get some groceries. Mickey, who had stayed with Rose to watch the Doctor, left to 'get some fresh air' and told Rose that he would come back in an hour.

Having been left alone with a recovering Doctor, Rose sat on the edge of her bed. It was all too exhausting for her. Sure, just watching someone was all right, but watching the Doctor was not. Anything could have happened. Aliens could have swarmed Earth and there would be no one to save them unless some kind of miracle happened. The Doctor hadn't shown any signs of waking up. All he did was slept. The blonde pulled her hair back into a ponytail and looked at the case. The cover itself was blank, it wasn't decorated with anything. Just whiteness. She turned the case over and checked its spine. Nothing. No title, no description, nothing.

She got up with the video case in her hand, examining it with intense eyes. Rose paced around the room and finally opened the case, revealing a disc. A blank disc. Not like those DVD discs where they had the title somewhere and maybe a photo. Nope. Not a single word. "That's stupid. Must've been low-budgeted," Rose told herself as she took the disc from the tray and walked forward to the television. She put the disc in the DVD player and pressed play, intrigued as to what the disc contained.

The screen flickered for a few seconds before it became clear. On the screen, Moriarty was reading a book. He sat casually on a wooden stool, the book rested on his lap, and he had a pair of glasses. Behind Moriarty had a row of trees. Simple, as if they were created by a child. The grass was tall and green, the background was covered gray. No clouds in sight, and no sun. Moriarty's still reading silently to himself until he caught a glimpse of the camera facing him. When he did, Moriarty closed the book and set it on the ground. He clapped his hands and grinned brightly. "Hullo!"

Rose looked to her left, then to her right. "What…?" She furrowed her brows and looked back at the screen, confusion on her face. "H-Hi?" It was silly. Talking to the screen. The young adult didn't know what overcame her to reply to it. Though, when she heard her name from the man, her eyes widened. She grew attentive and even more baffled. "What?"

His grin broadened and Moriarty took off his glasses and held them in one hand. "Would you like to hear a story? Oh, don't bother asking! Of course you do!" He said in a cheerful tone, almost as if he were talking to a child. "I'm sure you'll love my story, sweet Rose. Children do, and you're nothing but a child."

She made a face and opened her mouth to say that she wasn't a child, but immediately stopped herself. She didn't want to argue with a man through a screen. He wouldn't have heard her anyway. Rose gulped and sat on the bed.

"This is the story of Little Red Riding Hood, but it's not the average story you heard when you were a child. Oh, no. Nothing like that!" Moriarty laughed gleefully and continued, "No, no. You see, my stories are different. That's why kids love them. Now, off with the story. Long ago, there once was a girl named Little Red. She was so dreadfully normal, and I do mean _dreadfully normal!_ She lived in a small village with her mum. And you're probably asking, 'What about her dad?' You see, dear, Little Red's father died. A horse stomped on him to death. Isn't that sad?" Moriarty wept in a feign manner, sniffling and muttering 'boo-hoo.' "But that's a story to be told another day!" His voice was still happy. "Anywho, Little Red lived in a small village with her mum. She had a few friends. She worked very, very hard to keep her home. They were a very poor family. But enough with the back-story. Shall we continue?"

Another gulp from Rose. She didn't like this video. It made her feel like a child. And the expression that Moriarty gave toward the camera made her uneasy. She didn't like it at all. But Rose kept still as the video rolled on.

"One day, her mum told her that Little Red's grandmother was very sick and she needed to send Granny a basket of fruits, cake, and a bottle of magic liquid to keep her lively and well! Little Red's grandmother lived in another village and Red had to cross a forest to get there. Don't you think that's spooky? Anything can happen in the forest!" He made a concerned face and gasped in horror. After a couple seconds of silence, Moriarty continued with the story, "Now, Little Red was a fearless child and she didn't let all those bad thoughts invade her head! As she went through the woods, Little Red met another girl. The girl looked exactly like her but she was… different. Not in appearance, no, but in projection. Unlike Red, this other girl looked very sly. The way she walked, it was elegant. And let me tell you a secret that Little Red didn't know! The other girl, let's call her Bad Wolf, was actually… you guessed it! A wolf! She could change into a wolf! How neat was that?"

"This is stupid," Rose muttered out, now annoyed with the video. For what reason? It was away from her grasp. The blonde didn't turn off the television, though. Even though she was irritated with the story this man had been telling her, Rose was also eager to know more. It didn't seem like the regular fairy tale you would hear, and that made her curious. She fidgeted.

On the screen, Moriarty glided a hand - the one that didn't hold his glasses - over his hair. "And Bad Wolf wanted to eat Little Red up, but couldn't in fear that the woodcutters around the forest would hear! So instead, Bad Wolf asked Red where she was going and she notified Wolf about going to visit her grandmother's. 'Does she live far from here?' said Bad Wolf, and Little Red replied, 'Oh, no. Her house is just past this wood, the first house of the village!' And then Bad Wolf and Little Red made a bet. A bet to see who could visit Granny's home the quickest. Wolf took the shortcut and ran as fast as she could! In the middle of the run, she had turned into her wolf form. A wolf! Now, that isn't quite fair! Little Red strolled about the forest and gathered all kinds of things. Nuts, berries, flowers. Bad Wolf arrived at Granny's house and knocked at the door. Granny asked who it was and Wolf, in her best Little Red voice, said it was her granddaughter. Granny told her to come in and Wolf did. She then ate Granny up and got into her bed. She dressed herself in Granny's clothes and waited for Little Red. And just in time, too!"

She continued looking intently at the screen.

"Little Red was just outside the home. Red knocked and informed it was her. Bad Wolf told her to come in, just as Granny did moments ago. She told Red to put the basket on the stool and instructed the girl to come in bed with her."

Rose fidgeted more as her uneasiness expanded. She wasn't interested in the story any longer. She wondered how this man knew her. The name Bad Wolf was too secretive. There were only a handful of people that knew about the events; though, she came to the conclusion that since the words were painted over London, one would eventually notice it. But _she_ knew what it meant. The Doctor knew what it meant. And they were the only two that knew the meaning behind it. How could this storyteller know about it? Or… did he know at all? Was he just teasing her with names?

"Little Red commented on Granny's arms, legs, ears, and eyes. Wolf, in the guise of Red's grandmother, made up excuses. Now, Rose, don't make up silly excuses like Bad Wolf, all right?" He laughed wholeheartedly. "Then, Little Red commented on Wolf's teeth," Moriarty's voice grew deeper and sinister, "and Wolf said, 'All the better to eat you up with!' and gobbled Red up!" His voice turned even deeper. "The Wolf, satisfied with her meal, fell asleep. A woodcutter came near the home and heard the Wolf snoring. He went into the home and saw Bad Wolf. The woodcutter assumed, by Wolf's belly, that Wolf ate someone! Oh, what a smart woodcutter!" Moriarty returned to his old, happy tone. "So, the woodcutter, let's name him John… John Smith? Yes, yes. John took a knife and cut the wolf's belly. He saw Little Red, but there was no sign of Granny!"

John Smith? Rose knew something was up, but she didn't know what.

"He took Red out of the wolf's belly and the two stuffed rocks into Bad Wolf's insides. Red stitched her up and when Bad Wolf woke up, she was scared to see both John and Red! Wolf was so frightened, she turned back to her human form and tried to run. But the stones were so heavy, she couldn't carry it, and she died after the rocks damaged her organs. The woodcutter then proclaimed himself as a hunter. Because he killed a wolf? Oh, silly John! Anywho, he comforted Red at the loss of her grandmother, but it wasn't enough." Moriarty took a long pause.

As the pause lengthened, Rose bit her lip. Even more questions attacked her mind. One had to deal with the woodcutter's name. John Smith. She knew it wasn't a coincidence. Sure, that name was popular, but having put things together, Rose knew this was anything but a coincidence.

The pause ended and Moriarty resumed with the story. "Little Red didn't see John as the woodcutter. She didn't see him as the huntsman, either. No! She saw him as the man that could have saved her grandmother from Bad Wolf. But he didn't. He was too late. So, Red returned home, afraid to enter the woods and of John. Little Red's fear grew into hatred because of the loss of her grandmother. It was like she blamed John for it. And guess what? He deserved it," he cleared his throat, "she wouldn't trust him. That would be the last time she would affiliate herself with a stranger. Death would follow," Moriarty frowned, but his smile returned, and said, "The end!"

Just when Rose leaned over to take the disc out, the man on the screen told her not to and said that he wasn't done yet. She obeyed.

"Rose, you are Little Red. And you are Bad Wolf. Do you know who the woodcutter was?" He didn't wait for Rose to answer. "You guessed it! The Doctor! And like the woodcutter, he will try to save people, but end in failure… but you knew that, didn't you? You've seen what he can do, what he's capable of. Now, Rose-Red, if I were you, I'd stay away from him. You don't know what he'll do next. He may try to be the hero, but he's nothing special! He isn't a hero! Be careful around him. Ta-ta!" And the screen flickered until it turned black.

Rose, even more confused than ever, took the disc out and put it back in the DVD tray. "That was weird." She tossed the case on her bed and rushed to the Doctor's room. He was still asleep. Her hazel eyes filled with sorrow and a tinge of fear. Moriarty's video was getting to her. Rose never told him about it. What Moriarty said was true, however. She didn't know what else the Doctor could do. And she's seen quite a bit of his ability.

But it didn't stop her from having faith in the Doctor. Yes, she would be afraid of him at times, especially when he got angry, but Rose stayed faithful to the Time Lord.

Moriarty's plan didn't work on Rose. Or did it? She evaluated her life decisions and knew that bad things would happen, but she remained by the Doctor's side. Moriarty did accomplish something, not what he had hoped for, but he was satisfied with it. Rose Tyler experienced fear. The same fear she had when she first met the Doctor. And she was uncertain to trust the new Doctor, even if she went along with his plans. In the end, she had her heart smashed into a bunch of pieces. Well, the Doctor always left his friends with broken hearts.


	3. She Saw Through the Magic

Rose was gone. She was long gone. Rose was banished away from this world and was sent to another parallel universe. The Doctor had met a series of other people he wished to be his traveling friend, but they turned him down. It had been a while since that happened and the Doctor found a new friend, Martha Jones. Same old Doctor, a different companion.

Martha and the Doctor had arrived back to modern London and recently attended the Armistice Day commemoration. They were strolling back to the TARDIS, Martha talking about the adventure with the Doctor and how exhilarating it was. The Doctor listened to Martha ramble on about it and gave nods whenever she asked him a question.

The two reached the TARDIS and the Doctor followed Martha in. Martha smiled and found a pile of videos near the console. "Looks like you never got rid of them, huh?" Martha pointed at the stacked videos and heard the Doctor chuckle. She took one of the videos and reviewed it. The monitor's screen flickered and was occupied with the Doctor's face.

"Oh, god, this is embarrassing! Really? This one? You couldn't have picked another one?" He nudged Martha out of the way and turned the dial, fast-forwarding the video. He was pushed back by Martha playfully. "Oh, come on!" The Doctor whined softly and saw his companion smile.

"And five! Very important! Five, don't let me eat pears!" The Doctor's voice from the monitor started, "I hate pears! John Smith is a character I made up, but I won't know that. I'll think I _am_ him and he might do something stupid, like eat a pear! In three months, I don't want to wake up from being human, and taste _that!_" The Doctor took a pause. "And six, now I have to talk for around about a minute without hesitation and deviation, and whatever the other thing is. It's like that panel game on Channel 4, like Rory just pointed out. However, I'm going to move on and sa-" The video instantly switches to something else. The Doctor's face wasn't on the screen anymore, but a man. A man that Martha had never seen before.

Moriarty had acquired one of the videos and recorded his own little video in it. The Doctor knew that the chameleon arch would come in handy and recorded the video instructions way before he and Martha were being pursued by aliens. Though, he didn't bother to preview the videos before he turned human. This was the first time the Doctor watched it.

"I don't remember this." The Doctor said, looking at Martha. She told him that she skipped forward a few instructions and it was the first time she actually watched the full video, which resulted to the Doctor calling out Martha's name in a stern manner. He was told to be quiet as the new video played. The Doctor huffed and nudged Martha, still very displeased with what she did.

"Hullo, Martha Jones! Would you like to hear a story from me? Oh, I apologize, my name's Richard Brook. You've probably heard of me. I'm a storyteller, and I have a story just for you!" The man on the screen known as Richard said in an excited tone. He was wearing a loose white shirt and had messy hair. It looked like he just got out of bed. "I also apologize for my appearance, do hope you can forgive me for that!"

Martha looked at the screen, then at the Doctor. "This is your first time watching it? You didn't…" She didn't finish the sentence after she saw the Doctor shake his head. "Oh." She turned her head to look back at the screen.

Richard, as Moriarty introduced himself as, twisted his lips and clapped his hands. "Okay! Hope you're paying extreme attention to this, Martha! This is the story of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, but not as what you would recall it to be. You see, I may be a storyteller, but I like to give different takes on these classical works! Just a small tweak here and there. So," he said, "let's start it off, all right? Once upon a time, there lived a girl named Dorothy. She lived with her parents in boring, dull London. Dorothy didn't have a pet. He died years ago. Now one day, a tornado hit London! Oh, no!" He faked a terrified gasp. "The home that Dorothy was in, and it was only her at that time, it was transported to some other place! Not London! So very unlike London! It was all the tornado's fault, really."

The two shared a look. The Doctor thought it was some kind of joke and Martha found it a bit silly, listening and watching the video, but she was ecstatic with where the story would be going.

"She was in the land of Oz! How great is that? The land of Oz! Well, the house landed on someone! Oh, no! The house that Dorothy was in _killed_ someone! But don't worry, that person was really bad. And I mean, reaaaallly bad! It was the Wicked Witch of the East! She was the ruler of those weird little things, munchkins. Now, the Good Witch of the North and a few munchkins found Dorothy and gave her the Wicked Witch's silver shoes. And my, they were absolutely splendid on her! The Good Witch told her that the shoes gave its wearer magical powers, and in order to return to London, Dorothy had to visit the Wizard of Oz. In Emerald City. The Good Witch kisses Dorothy on the forehead to protect her from trouble! Mwah!" Moriarty gave an air kiss.

Martha made a face when Moriarty gave the kiss while the Doctor laughed. "Oh, shut up! He's talking again!" She hit the Doctor - again, playfully - and pointed at the screen.

Moriarty had been talking about how Dorothy skipped down the road of yellow bricks. "Dorothy found a scarecrow on a pole. He was there to guard the crops around him. Dorothy looked at the scarecrow intently, seeing a blue hat and some raggedy, old boots. The scarecrow winked at her, and Dorothy thought it was just a trick, but she was mistaken. The scarecrow nodded at her in a friendly manner and the two engaged in a conversation. Scarecrow asked if Dorothy could pluck him off the pole and that sweet girl did! Scarecrow then asked who Dorothy was and where she was going. When she answered, the scarecrow looked so, very confused! Just like you right now, isn't that right?"

The human gave a short gasp, a bit surprised.

He giggled and went on. "The scarecrow asked if he were to visit the Wizard, maybe he could get a brain. Dorothy wasn't really sure, but she did like the company, so she offered Scarecrow to come with her. He did and told her that his fear was a lit match. Oooh, I do wonder… if someone in the story has a match with them?" Moriarty circled a finger in the air. "Let's skip forward to when they found that tin man, yes? Excellent! Dorothy and Scarecrow found a tin man. He was groaning," Moriarty groaned several times before continuing with the story, "and Tin Man told them to fetch his oil can in the cottage. Dorothy oiled his limbs and Tin Man asked where they were going. Of course the answer was…"

It was the Doctor's turn to say something. "Emerald City!"

"That's right! Emerald City, to visit the Wizard. Tin Man asked if he joined with them on their adventure, the Wizard would give him a heart. Dorothy, just as she told Scarecrow, agreed to it, and the duo was now a trio! The Tin Man told the girl and Scarecrow about his life story, but that's all too boring, so I'll skip that part. This is my favorite! I love the lion! I so graciously do!" Moriarty clapped his hands happily and did a bit of a dance. When he settled down, he went on telling the story, "Dorothy and her new friends continued walking through the forest. The road was still made of yellow. Then, suddenly, a lion appeared! But don't worry! He wasn't a courageous lion, no! He was the cowardly lion. The lion tried to attack Dorothy when he had thrown Scarecrow and Tin Man to the side, but didn't. He couldn't hurt a girl! He would never! Dorothy acknowledged this and called him a big coward. Now that made Lion sad. Very, very sad! How could she?"

Martha laughed when she heard Moriarty's commentary about the lion. "I like this guy. He's funny!" She looked up to see the Doctor's reaction. He wasn't laughing. Actually, he looked pensive. "Doctor?"

"Yeah?"

"What's up?" Martha placed a comforting hand on the Doctor's arm.

The Doctor shook his head. "Nothing. It's just… I don't know. This man, it's like… I've seen him before? I just don't know where." He shook his head another time. "It's nothing, really. Shush, he's talking again." He instructed Martha to be quiet, but she hadn't said anything. It was all him. "I just don't know anyone by the name of Richard Brook."

"Hey! Be quiet. He's talking again," Martha repeated the Doctor's words, "now, shush!" She saw the Doctor purse his lips and watch the screen.

"Lion told them his story and Scarecrow said that lions shouldn't be cowards. Lion knew this. Scarecrow, Dorothy, and Tin Man told Lion that they were going to see the Wizard. And guess what? Lion wanted to join in! And they invited him to their party! … You know why I love the lion so much, Martha? He's so cowardly. Reminds me of a certain someone. He didn't have the courage to do something. But enough of that! They found many obstacles as they tried to get to Emerald City. These things, Kalidahs, they tried to kill them, but they crossed the gulf. The Kalidahs were swept away in the gulf and I do think they died when they hit sharp rocks at the bottom! Oh, dear, there's a lot of deaths in this story, isn't there? They found themselves in a poppy field and Dorothy and Lion were about to die, but Scarecrow and Tin Man saved them! If you didn't know, poppies kill you in large amounts. In small amounts, they make you sleepy. Since they found a whole meadow of it, Dorothy would have been dead in minutes."

The Doctor roamed around the TARDIS, but never strayed far from the console room. He had gotten bored of the story that Moriarty - or, in his knowledge, Richard Brook - was telling them. Martha was still interested with the story, however. Humming could be heard as the video rolled on.

"The Guardian of the Gates gave spectacles to each and every one of them and led them to this huuuge building! Guess who it belonged to? Yes, yes! Very good! It was the Wizard's! There was a soldier at the door. He was dressed in green. Guess that's why they call it Emerald City! They were guided in the palace and Dorothy was given a room. All to herself! Soon, she met the great Wizard of Oz. He was nothing but a head! A gigantic head! Dorothy and the head got into a bit of a quarrel and Dorothy was instructed to kill the Wicked Witch of the West in order to go back to London. Dorothy couldn't do it! She would never! She would never kill someone willingly! Just. Like. You." Moriarty pointed to his audience, in this case, Martha. "Scarecrow came into the throne room and expected the head, but saw a pretty lady instead," he grinned, "and repeated what was told to Dorothy. Kill the Wicked Witch. And guess what? Scarecrow couldn't do it either! So, Tin Man comes strolling into the room and saw a beast. A terrifying beast!" Moriarty let out a harsh snarl.

The Doctor laughed when he heard the noises from the man. "Is he trying to be scary?"

Moriarty stopped making the noises and resumed, "The Wizard told him to kill the Witch, and then Oz would give Tin Man a heart. Just like the rest, Tin Man couldn't do it. He just couldn't. And so, the lion came in. He didn't see a beast, or a lady, or a head, but a ball of fire. Lion was told the same thing. And he couldn't do it. All four of them gathered and went on a search for the Wicked Witch. Blah, blah, blah. Other words and stuff I don't really care about. Well, they finally killed the Witch. With a bucket of water. Kind of… silly, don't you think? Anywho, winged monkeys carried them back to Emerald City. Bit strange, this story. They entered the throne room and heard a voice. A voice belonging to the wizard. They got impatient and the Wizard of Oz was just an old man. Just a scared, feeble man. Oh, dear! The wizard has been caught! He was a fraud! A fraud!" With that last sentence, Moriarty smiled. Not a happy smile, but a grim smile.

The Doctor came back to Martha's side and the smile was wiped away from Moriarty's face. "So, anything?" The Doctor asked, trying to create small talk.

"What're you asking for?"

"Anything."

Martha gave a generous smile to the Doctor and pointed at the monitor again. "Just pay attention."

"The Wizard told his life story, something about having taken a hot air balloon ride from this unknown place, Galli-something, to Oz. Scarecrow asked if he could have any brains, and Wizard said that he may. Lion asked if he could have courage, and again, he said that he will give courage to Lion the next day. Tin Man asked if he could get a heart and the false wizard told him to come by tomorrow. Dorothy wanted to go back home. To London. Wizard pondered this and said that it will take him a few days. The next day, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion received their gifts. Everyone did, but Dorothy. Poor girl was left to wait. I'm not really sure what happens next. It's been a while since I've read the story, but I'm sure that they all had a happy ending! Minus all the deaths that happened in the story. Frightening, isn't it? And to think, it's popular! I do suppose that these popular literary works must have deaths in it." Moriarty twisted his lips in consideration and nodded. "Yes, yes. I do think what makes a good story is a death!"

She was about to fast-forward the video, but was stopped by a yell coming from Moriarty. Martha jumped and she felt the Doctor rest a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry about that. Really, sorry," Moriarty ran a hand through his messy hair and went on, "but you really must listen to me. I told this story because I thought it was oh, so _fitting_ for you! For your life story! Would you like to know who the wizard is?" He gave a wink and pressed his finger to his lips. "That Doctor of yours. _The_ Doctor. He's nothing but a fraud," Moriarty raised his eyebrows and pointed at his audience, "and you've fallen for his tricks. When are you going back to London, Martha? When will you return home? Or are you going to stay with the Doctor and witness all those deaths? Who will the Wicked Witch be? I've no clue, but I do know that the Doctor is not what he seems to be. He will promise you all these kinds of goodies, but you will see that he's nothing but a fraud. Don't f-"

The Doctor, furious, took the video out and threw it across the room. He huffed and looked at Martha, anger still showing on his face. "That's enough of story time," he tried to lessen his hostility, "Now, where do you want to go?"

Martha didn't respond. She was too focused on the Doctor's current condition. She saw him become angry before, but this was just a threat. Why would the Doctor become angry over something like a measly threat? "I don't know. Where do you want to go?"

The Time Lord shrugged, his anger rapidly subsiding. "How 'bout somewhere fun? There's this place I know, everything is made of candy! And I'm a bit hungry, so let's go there!"

His companion didn't say anything. She was still too busy with the Doctor and his rage. She recently arrived back to an adventure in which he did horrible things to the Family of Blood and it was itching at her head. Latimer knew completely who the Doctor was and described him. Martha knew she was dealing with a dangerous man, but continued to travel with him.

It got to her one day. She knew that she had enough. Enough of the Doctor, enough of the constant travels through time and space. It all seemed so tiring. Martha left the Doctor companion-less. It was bound to happen, but the Doctor didn't want it to end. He never wanted it to end.

As for the Doctor, he searched for this Richard Brook and found many things about him. He was a storyteller. He was famous for being on television shows for children. The Doctor knew a lot of things about Richard Brook, but one thing he didn't know was that it was all an alias. It was an act. He didn't know that Richard Brook was actually James Moriarty. And he didn't know this was all a threat, a warning.


	4. It Didn't Feel Like a Dream

Everything felt strange. Everything had that weird vibe to it. Like you just experienced something, but couldn't name or describe it. It was still there, scratching and breaking at every little wall to make itself known, but you still could not remember it. A fading memory, perhaps. Like you were in the middle of something. Middle of a world full of fantasies and reality. Yes, that was what was weird. Everyone was feeling it. It wasn't _normal_. Nobody would snap out of it because they chose not to. They chose to linger around and try to put the pieces together. Only to fail. Yet, they kept trying.

Donna Noble was not one of these people. She had abandoned the feeling that something was strange, something was inhuman. She couldn't point it out. She never had the time to try to work it out. She was never given the chance to. Donna was busy. She recently got married and was trying to settle down with her new husband, Shaun Temple. All those little things that accompanied with being married. Fun.

They had their own house, of course. Though, it was tiny. The home was one story tall, painted beige. Donna didn't like the original color so she told Shaun to paint it a different color. It was simple. A garage, a front yard, a couple bathrooms, a bedroom, a kitchen, the living room, and everything else. It certainly wasn't the best house in London, but it was sufficient.

One day, Shaun had gone to work, leaving Donna behind to clean up the place. They had been in the home for about two weeks now, but they still had a lot of unpacking and moving things around to do. The kitchen was done and so was the living room. One of the bathrooms was partially made to fit both their tastes and the bedroom was still being decided upon. The other bathroom was still dull and empty.

There were boxes in the living room. Some were large, others were small. The empty ones had been ripped apart and tossed aside at one of the corners. Donna dragged a half empty box to the center of the room, setting the items from the box into the tiled floor. She had her hair tied up in a messy bun and she was wearing a green long-sleeved shirt. She wore a pair of pajamas, suggesting that she had just gotten out of bed and never bothered to change. Donna sat down by the box and continued to take the materials out. The box had small vases and framed photographs, most of them belonging to her husband.

The silence was irritating her. She leaned over to the couch nearby to grab the television remote, pressing the on button. A newsperson filled the screen and she surfed through the other channels until Donna was satisfied with a reality show. Donna got into it and started laughing, making fun of the people at their decisions or outbursts. She always loved these kinds of shows. It was entertaining.

The phone rang and she ignored the first few rings. Then, after the fifth ring, Donna got up from the floor and picked up the phone. "Hullo? Who's this?"

"Richard Brook." A male voice from the other end replied to her, a small titter escaping after he introduced himself. "Hi, Donna Noble. Oh, congratulations on getting married! I'm so proud of you!"

Donna didn't recognize the name. She didn't even familiarize herself with the man's voice. She had never met him or heard of him. And she certainly didn't invite a Richard Brook to her wedding. Still, she blocked out all her eager questions. "Thank you. Why are you calling?" Donna circled around the box she was emptying while looking at the television screen.

A pause. On the other end, he took a sharp inhale and breathed out a sigh. "I want to tell you a story. I'm sure you'll like it."

This got her. Donna loved stories. Or well, gossip. She would always be the one that would know what was going on with another person, perhaps a friend, perhaps a stranger, but she loved hearing stories of other people. A spark of curiosity flickered in her eyes and she made a tight smile. "All right."

"Good. Once upon a time," the other person started, "there was a girl. Let's name her Alice. She was sitting by a riverbank with her sister. Everything was so boring! The book that her sister possessed had no pictures! Just words! That wouldn't catch Alice's attention. Then, she saw a rabbit. Fully-clothed. Was that natural back then? Oh, I've no clue." He made a laugh, mumbling something about a clothed rabbit and saying how ridiculous it was. Though, the man on the other line finally got back to the story. "The rabbit took a look at a watch! A watch! Now that's remarkable!" His voice grew high and giddy. "The rabbit hurried off and Alice followed, leaving her sister behind. Where could they be going? Why was the rabbit in such a hurry? You'll find out. You'll find out soon, Donna."

"What is this? Some kind of fairy tale? I don't want to listen to this nonsense!" Donna went red, half-embarrassed at hearing Moriarty's storytelling persona, Richard, go on with the story, half-upset that it wasn't something that she had expected. Before she could hang up, she was interrupted by a scream on the other end. It startled her and she dropped the phone. Donna, after recovering, picked up the phone and placed it to her ear. "Hullo? Are you all right?"

Another laugh from her partner. "Yes, yes. I'm fine. I'd love it if you were to continue hearing this. It's fun! Really! Please don't hang up!" His voice had a pathetic and a bit of a whiny tone to it.

Donna couldn't hang up on him. She just couldn't. "Fine." A heavy sigh pushed out of her mouth as she trailed over to a couch, flopping on it. "Continue."

"All right! Thank you, thank you. Anywho, Alice found the rabbit. Found the rabbit go through a hole! A rabbit hole under the hedge! So what does Alice do? You guessed it." When he said that last sentence, it had a bit of an eerie pitch to it. One that could make someone shudder. It was a bit sly, like he was playing a game with Donna. And he was. Only Donna didn't know. Not yet, anyway. "She followed the rabbit into the hole! And… hole was actually a well. A well with cups and books and all those other treats! Down and down and down. Miles long, perhaps. When she reached the bottom, Alice saw the rabbit. Fleeing from her! The chase went on for a while until the rabbit was out of her sight. She lost the rabbit! Oh, no!" He took a pause before starting again. "Alice ventured around. After a few… heh, _incidents_, Alice grew unhappy and cried. She found the rabbit again, only this time, he was dressed differently. She called out to him, but the rabbit dropped his things and fled. Again with the running! Well, I'd be frightened too, if I were to meet a giant girl. Oh, and yes, she grew. Very tall. That was one of the incidents."

The redhead simply rolled her eyes. She knew the story. It was Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. But she never interrupted. All Donna did was nod and let out soft 'mhmm's, suggesting that she was keeping track of the story.

A soft scoffing laugh broke through in one of Donna's mhmm's. "Am I boring you, Donna?"

"Oh, never!" She lied. And she knew that he knew this. Donna gave up on the act immediately and admitted, "yeah. It's getting boring. I already know the story so why bother telling me?"

"Fine, fine. I'll shorten it. How's that? Besides, I've got things to do. I just really want to tell you this story." The noise of him clearing his throat was made and he began again, "Alice's tears had made a huge mess. A river. She swam around and eventually found a mouse. A cute mouse. Bit chubby for its size, though. Alice, thinking that the mouse was some kind of French mouse, talked to it by asking a question. A whole fuss broke out between the two for the question had something concerning about cats. Still, they found their way to the bank and assembled there, along with a group of other animals. Alice did something stupid and made all the other animals run away. Stupid Alice. Stupid girl." His voice went bitter, as if he was disappointed and was scolding a child.

It made Donna laugh. She couldn't help it. She loved Moriarty's various pitches. She loved how he would comment on the story while he was telling it. Loved absolutely everything.

"The rabbit came by again in search for something. Alice, being the little twat that she is, joined in. The rabbit mistook her for someone by the name of Mary Ann. And to be quite honest with you, dear Donna, I prefer the name Mary Ann to Alice. So, the rabbit got fussy and yelled at her in his meanest tone, 'Mary Ann! What are you doing out here? Run home now and fetch me a pair of gloves and a fan! Quick, go now!'" His voice turned bitter as he spoke out the rabbit's dialogue and also tried to suppress his giggles. Certainly, Moriarty was having too much fun with telling the story. "Alice took off and sheltered herself into a home that belonged to the real Mary Ann. The little girl found a drink, and for some stupid reason, she drank it! It didn't have a warning! But you never, and I mean never, ever drink something that doesn't have a label on it! Only this time, unlike her previous predicament, dumb old Alice _knew_ something would happen to her. Her logic… I do-don't understand it!"

He went on ranting about how dumb and reckless Alice was until Donna said something that made him stop. Moriarty went on with the story. "Er. My apologies with that. It won't happen again." A pause of uncertainty. "Okay, maybe. Well, as you would know, poor dumb Alice grew to the size of the house. She tried to escape, but oh no! The other animals were shocked to find her arm sticking out of the window! So what did the animals do? They threw rocks at Alice! Rocks! Oh my, maybe this story isn't fit for kids. That's abuse, isn't it?"

Donna didn't answer. All she had was a big grin on her face. She absolutely loved Moriarty's version of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Plus, she also knew that it was rhetorical, so he didn't really need an answer.

"They turned into little cakes. I don't know how, but I suppose crazy things do happen in Wonderland! Alice, oh that silly Alice, she ate the cakes. Thankfully, it helped her! She was reverted back to her tiny, squish-able, self again. So-"

The redhead got him off. "Wait. Hold on." Donna got up from the couch and walked toward one of the windows. She peeked out and found Shaun's car pulling up to the garage. "My husband's home. I think he's here for a break, maybe he left something. But it was nice listening to you. I'd love to hear you finish this story again." Donna was being generous now. Yes, she wanted to hear Moriarty tell the story to her, but she also didn't want a stranger calling her up. She didn't recognize him. Not by his voice, not by his name. "If he walks in through this door and sees me not doing anything, he'll have a fit! Now, I've really got to go. Really. Sorry, Richard." Moving away from the window, Donna shifted the phone away from her ear. Just before she was about to end the call, another scream from the other end shocked her. Only this time, she didn't drop the phone. "Richard? Richard?" Her voice went urgent, pressing the phone to her ear for some kind of response.

"Yes, yes. Sorry about that. Something fell, you see. Scared the bloody hell out of me." A nervous laugh broke out. "I don't want to bore you with what you've heard before. But I do have something to ask of you."

"Yeah? What is it?"

Moriarty's voice lowered, as if he was whispering a secret to someone, "I've got-_zzt_!-thing to tell_-bzz!-_a man, in a-_zzt!_" Something was strange. An interference. Moriarty didn't seem to notice as he continued on with his message, "He's got a_-brmm!-_you should never speak to hi-_bzz!-_otherwise, you'll have the ride for your life. It's not-_zzt!-_you'll get yourself killed-" Again, Moriarty was cut off by Donna.

"Hold it, speedy! What are you saying? I can't hear you!" Her voice, still urgent, grew louder. Donna moved over to the window again and saw that Shaun was grabbing something from inside his vehicle. She gave out a sigh of relief. "Richard, I can't hear you!"

"You'll get yourself killed, Donna. If you ever meet him again. He'll make it sound like Wonderland! And you're going to be the dumb girl that'll try new things when you should know better!" The noises stopped and his voice was clear, now in a begging pitch. "Just don't go near him! Don't speak to him, don't even ask about him! Forget it, forget it like some half-remembered dream. Please, please… Donna Noble, please don't go looking for the Doct-"

The call abruptly ended, leaving Donna with questions. She heard the dead tone of the other end and sighed, tossing the phone onto the couch. She didn't want to call Moriarty back. The frustrated woman settled down and sat by the box again, just before she received her call from Richard Brook. _Who was he talking about? What did he mean by again? Did I meet this other guy before? I don't remember… who was he?_ Questions circled around her head and after a while of trying to answer them, it gave her a headache. With a groan, Donna attempted to busy herself with the items inside the box, placing them on the floor. Her head turned to the door when she heard it open. A half-hearted smile made its way on her face as she saw Shaun. "Hey. Why are you here?"

"Forgot something. Told my boss I'd get it." He explained briefly, rushing into the bedroom. After seven minutes, he came back from the room with a folder tucked under his arm. "Found it." Shaun pointed at the folder and walked over to Donna, giving her a quick peck to the forehead. "Got to run. See you in a few hours!" In a rush, Shaun hurried out the home, slamming the door shut.

The loud sound of the door made Donna cringe a little. Again, she was alone. Alone to fix up the house. Alone to question what Moriarty was advising her to do - or what not to do. There may have been some things that Donna inquired, but this was something absolutely new. There was something - or in this case, _someone_ - that Moriarty knew. Someone that Donna interacted with before. But she would never know. Donna would never know that the person she was searching for was the Doctor, the man that changed her and vouched for her safety. Donna was his mate. She wouldn't know. She would never know. After all, everything was stuck in the middle.

Everyone kept on wondering and yearning. They questioned if something was real or fake. And that feeling had returned to Donna. She scanned around the depths of her mind for something she wasn't suppose to remember. Something she experienced. Something forbidden. But again, she would never know. Donna would be stuck in the middle, always asking if something was real or not. 'Was it a dream? Was it all in my head? It certainly didn't feel like a dream, so maybe it was real?' Those were the questions that haunted her.


	5. Fly Away to Neverland

It was all quick. It happened in less than an hour. So many things could happen in an hour.

His previous companions left him for good and he regenerated. The Doctor took in a younger form, still male, but he shaved off about a decade from his last body. The Doctor sought out another companion. Like Donna, she was a redhead. Certainly fancied the Time Lord, too. Unfortunately, she had a boyfriend to lug around. He eventually became another passenger toward the Doctor's rides.

The redhead, Amy Pond, was leaning against the TARDIS as she waited for the Doctor and her boyfriend, Rory, to come back. The two males told her to stay put, saying that she had to 'guard the TARDIS if any monsters came around' while they went to get lunch. Rory promised her that they'll be back soon and he'd bring something nice for her, but she didn't buy it.

It was about half an hour since they left her and there was no sign of them. No sign of her friends. She was all alone. So, what did Amy do? She pulled out her phone and began playing the demo versions of games that was installed in it. After some time, she grew bored of the games and decided to look around for anything the phone had to offer. It was fairly old, but Amy didn't use her phone quite a lot. After all, it was just a phone. It wasn't anything spectacular.

Amy checked through her videos. She recorded silly ones, usually ones with her and the Doctor dancing to some kind of music. There were a couple of short videos of her and Rory goofing around, but her videos mainly consisted of the Doctor. Something caught her attention. A new video. One she didn't record herself. And it was recorded a couple days ago. Amy didn't make a new video since three months ago, so it was something to be interested in.

What Amy didn't know was that two days ago, Amy left her phone unattended as she and her two friends went out to dinner. She was getting ready, picking out an outfit from her closet back at home. Amy was in a rush, yelling at Rory and the Doctor to wait as she prepared herself. Amy forgot all about the phone resting on the bed and left. It gave Moriarty an easy way to enter the home, snatch the device, and return it before Amy could notice.

She clicked at the thumbnail of the video and it expanded to fill the screen. A man with gelled hair in a gray suit occupied most of the space. Behind him was a crudely made background. There was a yellow circle with rays sticking out from it, indicating that it was the sun. There were no clouds, but there was a brilliant shade of blue. Ten seconds pass by and the man spoke out, "Hi! My name's Richard! Richard Brook." Amy furrowed her eyebrows. She recognized Richard. Not as his true identity, James Moriarty, but as Richard Brook, a storyteller for children. Amy, when she had gotten bored and there were no other interesting shows to watch, would resort to watching one of the television channels for toddlers. Richard Brook was popular, having his own time slot to tell classic stories to children. Amy relaxed her facial muscles, content to see a possible video about Moriarty's stories, but still questioning as to how the footage managed to get into her phone.

"I'd like to tell you the story of Peter and Wendy. I'm sure you know about it. The magical never-aging boy and the girl that helped defeat the boy's rival. But I'll change it, just a tad." Moriarty cleared his throat and begun, "Once upon a time, there was a young man. Very young. Oh, and handsome, too. Anywho, his name was Peter Pan. Or at least, that's what he told people. His real name was John. He went by this alias because… well, to be quite honest, I don't really know _why_ he used one. Maybe he was hiding something?" Moriarty tilted his head, an over-exaggerated thoughtful look painted on his face as he rubbed his palm at his cheek. He quickly erased the expression and went on with the story, "Peter often visited London. He loved it! Absolutely adored it. He loved traveling to foreign places, but he grew quite fond of London," a brief pause took place. "And every time he visited London, most notably Leadworth, Peter would creep near a building. A house. He listened to these bedtime stories. Classical stories. Alice in Wonderland, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Three Little Pigs. All those sorts!"

Amy, a curious smile on her face, continued to watch the video. It was different. Different from the things she had seen on television. On the telly, Moriarty, in the guise of Richard, would talk in a bit of a baby voice and perhaps over-exaggerate his expressions. Sometimes he'd make noises that accompanied the content of his stories, but this was different. It had an unfamiliar vibe, something absent from his usual shows. Something was missing and was replaced… but of what? Amy didn't know. All she knew was that she enjoyed this strange entertainment.

Moriarty continued on about how Peter left a possession of his at the house and how a girl, a little girl named Wendy, told Peter about some kind of crack on a wall in her home. She returned the possession to Peter and in return, Peter tried to fix the crack. "Peter couldn't fix the crack. Not with his knowledge! So, Peter hopped out of Wendy's home and ran back to his place. He told Wendy he'd be back in five minutes and said he was going to get something to fix that wall. But what Peter didn't realize was that he didn't know where this solution to the crack was hiding around in. He spent hours searching for it. Those hours turned into days. And those days turned into months, and eventually into years. Young Peter spent _years_ searching for that thing. Could you believe that? Waiting for someone to come back. Only to fix a simple crack in the wall! Oh, Peter. You are so very silly." Moriarty shook his head, a slight titter escaping from his lips. "Peter couldn't find the item, but he decided to return to Wendy. He noticed that Wendy grew up. She was no longer a little girl, but a young woman. But he didn't know that. He wasn't aware of the time he had spent. He wasn't aware that she grew up while he stayed the same. The curse of Peter Pan. The never-aging lad."

"Like the Doctor." Amy told herself flatly at the description of Moriarty's slightly changed version of the classical Peter Pan.

"Out of the blue, Peter asked Wendy if she wanted to 'run away with him'. Of course, without thinking about her current life, Wendy agreed to follow up on Peter's upcoming adventures. The two crawled through the open window and ran from London. Ran very far away. When they reached their destination, Peter's home, he introduced her to the children. They were boys. Cute, little, some were a bit tubby, some were lanky. They were Peter's friends. The Lost Boys, Peter called them. One of the boys told Peter that Captain Hook was around! And he stole one of the Little Boys' friends! His name was Toby. Peter, with the help of one of the Lost Boys that told him about the information concerning Hook, went to the ship. He told Wendy to stay put, but she wouldn't listen. Always going on adventures, this girl. After a short argument, Peter brought Wendy along and Peter, Wendy, and the Lost Boys found Captain Hook's ship. They had to fight off these pirates! Swashbuckling fun, hn? Some of the pirates surrendered, but others still fought with them."

The young redhead wavered her eyes and pinched the edges of her eyebrows, interest growing in her body and showing on her face. Moriarty had that effect on people. He'd capture his audience's interest and keep it until the story folds into a conclusion.

On the phone's screen, the recording of Moriarty took a brief pause and licked his visibly dry lips. "Peter eventually found Hook and fought the captain off. You'd think that Peter, with his strength, would easily fight off Captain Hook, huh? But then again, Peter is a bit skinny. Not good." Before he continued off subject with his miniature rambling about Peter, the man caught himself and brought the story back on track, "During the fight, Peter gets injured! Oh, no!" Moriarty said in an alarmed tone. "That's… actually pretty predictable." A snort was made and he clapped his hands once, resuming, "Peter got thrown out of the ship. One of the Lost Boys were captured by Hook and the rest of the boys directed Wendy to leave the ship and head back to Peter's home. They left Peter stranded in the ocean. Such great friends~ But not to worry! Peter, almost immediately recovering from the pain from his wounds, but still filling the sea with his blood, swam back home. When he reached home, Wendy prepared a warm bed and blankets for the soaked boy. He noticed that some of the pirates were there and Peter threw a fit. He was really angry!" Moriarty feigned an irritated expression, puffing his cheeks out and flaring his nostrils. He held his breath until he turned red, then expelled the air from his cheeks. "But one of the pirates, his name was Avery, said that he and the rest of the pirates were going to help Peter! When Peter settled down and was patched up, he finally noticed that one of the Lost Boys were missing!"

Amy gasped. She was so captivated by the story that she nearly forgot that it was just a recording.

"That night, Peter couldn't sleep. He overheard the pirates, the Lost Boys, and Wendy contemplate about how to retrieve the missing boy and the friend. Though, exhaustion wore him out and Peter knocked out. Poor Peter. Tsk, tsk." Shaking his head, Moriarty resumed making that 'tsk' noise but soon stopped. "In a dream, Peter was told by a fairy in a blue dress addressed by the name of Tinker Bell that he needed to go back to the ship. So what did Peter do? He woke up from his dream, only to find everyone but Wendy asleep, and tried to sneak away back to the whereabouts of the ship. But where was this ship? He didn't know! So how in the world would Peter find it? He trusted his guts! That's what you do! You trust your gut! Got that?" Moriarty patted at his stomach and poked at it, then went on, "Peter didn't argue with Wendy when Wendy wanted to join him, all he did was sternly tell her that it was going to be dangerous… well, wasn't it? Anything that dealt with Peter was dangerous! Oh, where was I?" It took him a while to remember where he was. "Oh, yes. That's right. Peter eventually found the ship and boarded onto it. Everything was silent. It was still nighttime, stars still filled the sky, so everyone was asleep. The pirates that were on guard fell asleep next to each other and Peter easily managed to walk past them. Then, he saw a sea serpent past by the ship!" Moriarty didn't say a word after that and in the video, a sharp _twang!_ was heard.

Another gasp from Amy. Shock and some form of child-like delight shone in her eyes.

When the note dulled down, the story went on. "The snake made a sharp hiss and the serpent's body scraped along the side of the ship and caused the ship to almost topple over! It jolted the pirates back up on their feet and Peter quickly hid behind a large box. The sea serpent was gone, but Peter imitated the hissing sound that the monster made. The pirates became frightened and warily walked around the floor of the ship, looking around for the serpent. I do believe those pirates have the brain of a mouse! Don't they know that the creature's gone and it's just Peter?" A sigh was forced out of Moriarty's mouth. Seconds later, he regained his calmness. "The pirates stepped closer to where Peter was hiding at and Peter, taking a rock into his hand, threw it across the ship and into the water. Most of the pirates went to that side to check on what that was and given the chance, Peter ran from his original spot and into a room. He thought he was safe, but when he examined the room, he found out that Wendy was there! In the room! With him! Peter tried not to make too much noise and fought with Wendy in whispers. Peter saw the Lost Boy and Toby. They were hooked onto some kind of machine, life machines…? Probably. Wendy tried to unhook the boy from the machine, but found out that he was choking when he was unhooked! What was happening? Nobody knew! Not Wendy and definitely not Peter!"

A yell from the distance brought Amy back into the real world, not engulfed by Moriarty's video. She saw the Doctor and Rory with a brown paper bag in both of their hands. A grin etched on her face and she brought an arm up, waving it to the two.

When Amy looked back at the video, Moriarty was talking about Peter deducing that Captain Hook was simply a doctor and was helping people with their illnesses instead of stealing them away from their homes. "Wendy made a contract with Hook about the Lost Boy. She unhooked the boy and Hook _disappeared_. Fading disappeared! That Hook is something. He wasn't… a human, was he? Well, Wendy brought the boy back to life and when the three of them walked out of the room, they found their fellow pirates! While they were in the room, Avery and the rest fought back the bad pirates and tied them up. The bad pirates got thrown off the ship." A hearty laugh was made from Moriarty as he covered his mouth to stifle the noise. "My apologies. I just found that bit funny. But, erm, y-yes. Avery became captain of the ship when Peter told him that Hook was gone. When Toby regained consciousness, he wanted to stay on the ship with Avery and the rest instead of going back home. Blah, blah, something else happens, blah."

Rory and the Doctor were almost by Amy and the TARDIS. It would've taken them about another five minutes. Amy didn't fast-forward to the ending. She knew that she was close to the end of the video.

"Back in Leadworth, Wendy adopted the boy that was caught in Hook's machine and she asked if Peter wanted to stay in London, but Peter declined the offer. Though, Peter say he'd return to her. Then, every night after that event, Wendy looked out the window, hoping that Peter would come back and take her to another adventure. Sometimes she'd say, 'You won't forget to come for me, Peter? Please, please don't forget.' And Peter wouldn't. He would get lonely if he forgot about Wendy." Moriarty's tone steadily shifted to one that resembled sobriety. "And he'd go absolutely mad. Perhaps." His tone softened and he lowered his head down.

By the time the Doctor and Rory met back up with Amy, the video was done. She stuffed the phone back into her pocket and gave both of the boys a smile, taking the bag from Rory first. "What's in here?" She asked, taking a peek into the bag. She took a small sniff and realized that it was some kind of burger. Still keeping the bag, Amy turned to point at the bag that was in the Doctor's hand. "What's that?"

"Fish and chips." A wide smile was given to Amy and he handed the bag to her. He then playfully shoved Amy and Rory out of the way of the TARDIS and unlocked the door, stepping into the blue box. "So, where to next?"

Rory shrugged and wrapped his arm around Amy's, joining the Doctor in the TARDIS. "Wherever you want to go."

After a few tossing of ideas, the trio planned on going to a planet that was similar to the world of Panem from The Hunger Games, as Amy had recently read. Of course, they nearly would have gotten themselves killed if it weren't for the Doctor to save his companions.

Amy didn't think too much about the video that was on her phone. She really didn't feel like thinking about it. But she did tell Rory about it after he confiscated her phone. Rory, too, didn't circle around thinking about the video about Moriarty's tale. There was no need. It was no threat. No threat to them. Or at least, not yet.


	6. He Died For the Last Time

It had been a few months after Rory discovered Amy's video about this Richard Brook. He still didn't focus too much on it, and neither did Amy. They did tell the Doctor, however. Rory expected the Doctor to do something about it, but all the Time Lord did was laugh it off, leaving the humans confused.

It was in the middle of the night. His phone was chirping, but Rory was already asleep. Rory Williams was a heavy sleeper. He slept through a weak earthquake once. He didn't feel it, but noticed that the photos framed on the walls were tilted - just slightly - when he woke up.

Rory's phone beeped, minute after minute, for about 15 minutes. Rory, gently waking up to the sound of his cellular device, moaned in his sleep and turned his body, wrapping his blanket around him more. He was back home; back to Leadworth. Amy was with him, but she was in a different room. Surprisingly, it was Rory who had decided they should sleep in separate rooms. After his moving, he didn't shuffle in bed any longer.

Morning came and Rory groped around for his phone. Once he found the cold device in his hand, he brought his head up to check the time. It was still early. 6:49 AM. He knew Amy would never be awake at this time, so he planted his face against his pillow. "Mm." Rory opened his mouth to form a loud yawn, holding his breath as he did. Still groggy, Rory didn't notice that he had received a multitude of texts overnight.

10 minutes later, Rory, slowly breaking away from his sleepy nature, sat up in his head with his legs crossed. He looked out the window, seeing that the sun was just rising. Birds cawed and the wind whistled. Smacking his lips, Rory Williams took another peek at his phone. "Oh. What's this?" He asked himself, checking his inbox. Rory's eyes widened when he noticed the number of texts he got, his mouth gaping a little.

_Unknown_

_1:23 AM_

_Helllooooo, Rory Williams! I'm sorry for interrupting you at this time. I do hope you don't mind if I tell you a story~? Oh, goodie!_

_1:25 AM_

_Rory? Little Roooooorrry. Are you there?_

_1:25 AM_

_I'll start anyway. _

_1:26 AM_

_Oh, by the way, the story's by Hans Christian Andersen. It's called The Angel. I might change it up a bit, just so you know. I just added a few names and such, it's nothing too bad._

_1:28 AM_

_Whenever a good child dies, an angel of God comes down from heaven, takes the dead child in his arms, spreads out his great white wings, and flies him over all the places which the child had loved during his life. _

_1:31 AM_

_Then he gathers a large handful of flowers, which he carries up to the Almighty, that they may bloom more brightly in heaven than they do on earth. And the Almighty presses the flowers to His heart, but He kisses the flower that pleases Him best, and it receives a voice, and is able to join the song of the chorus of bliss._

_1:36 AM_

_These words were spoken by an angel of God, as he carried a dead child up to heaven. Let's name that child… Rowan. He was carried up to heaven and Rowan listened to the angel as if in a dream. Then they passed over well-known spots, where the little one had often played, and through beautiful gardens full of lovely flowers._

_1:38 AM_

"_Which of these shall we take with us to heaven to be transplanted there?" asked the angel. Close by grew a slender, beautiful, rose-bush._

Rory kept reading through the texts.

_1:40 AM_

_Some wicked hand had broken the stem, and the half-opened rosebuds hung faded and withered on the trailing branches. "Poor rose-bush!" said Rowan, "let us take it with us to heaven, that it may bloom above in God's garden."_

_1:41 AM_

_The angel took up the bush; then he kissed the child, and the little one half opened his eyes. The angel gathered also some beautiful flowers, as well as a few humble buttercups and heart's-ease._

_1:43 AM_

"_Now we have flowers enough," said Rowan; but the angel only nodded, he did not fly upward to heaven._

_1:47 AM_

_It was night, and quite still in the great town. Here they remained, and the angel hovered over a small, narrow street, in which lay a large heap of straw, ashes, and sweepings from the houses of people who had removed. There lay fragments of plates, pieces of plaster, rags, old hats, and other rubbish not pleasant to see. Amidst all this confusion, the angel pointed to the pieces of a broken flower-pot, and to a lump of earth which had fallen out of it. The earth had been kept from falling to pieces by the roots of a withered tassel flower, which had been thrown amongst the rubbish. Emilia fosbergii. That's the scientific name of the flower._

_1:49 AM_

"_We will take this with us," said the angel, "I will tell you why as we fly along." And as they flew, the angel related the history. "Down in the narrow lane, in a low cellar, lived a poor sick boy; he had been afflicted from his childhood, and even in his best days he could just manage to walk up and down the room on crutches once or twice, but no more." There were even times he would predict his death. Well, anywho…_

_1:52 AM_

"_During some days in summer, the sunbeams would lie on the floor of the cellar for about half an hour. In this spot the poor sick boy would sit warming himself in the sunshine, and watching the red blood through his delicate fingers as he held them before his face."_

_1:52 AM_

_My, my, this is a long passage. You're just lucky I'm doing this word-for-word, Rory._

_1:53 AM_

_Well, for the most part._

_1:55 AM_

"_Then he would say he had been out, yet he knew nothing of the green forest in its spring verdure, till a neighbor's girl - her name was Amelia - brought him a green bough from a beech-tree. This he would place over his head, and fancy that he was in the beech-wood while the sun shone, and the birds caroled gaily. One spring day, Amelia brought him some tassel flowers, and among them was one to which the root still adhered."_

_1:57 AM_

"_This he carefully planted in a flower-pot, and placed in a window-seat near his bed. And the flower had been planted by a fortunate hand, for it grew, put forth fresh shoots, and blossomed every year. It became a splendid flower-garden to the sick boy, and his little treasure upon earth. He watered it, and cherished it, and took care it should have the benefit of every sunbeam that found its way into the cellar, from the earliest morning ray to the evening sunset."_

_2:01 AM_

"_The flower entwined itself even in his dreams - for him it bloomed, for him spread its perfume. And it gladdened his eyes, and to the flower he turned, even in death, when the Lord called him. He has been one year with God. During that time the flower has stood in the window, withered and forgotten, till at length cast out among the sweepings into the street, on the day of the lodger's removal. And this poor flower, withered and faded as it is, we have added to our nosegay, because it gave more real joy than the most beautiful flower in the garden of a queen."_

_2:02 AM_

"_But how do you know all this?" asked Rowan whom the angel was carrying to heaven. "I know it," said the angel, "because I myself was the poor sick boy who walked upon crutches, and I know my own flower well."_

_2:06 AM_

_Then the child opened his eyes and looked into the glorious happy face of the angel, and at the same moment they found themselves in that heavenly home where all is happiness and joy. And God pressed the dead child to His heart, and wings were given him so that he could fly with the angel, hand in hand. Then the Almighty pressed all the flowers to His heart; but He kissed the withered tassel flower, and it received a voice._

_2:08 AM_

_Then it joined in the song of the angels, who surrounded the throne, some near, and others in a distant circle, but all equally happy. They all joined in the chorus of praise, both great and small - the good, happy child, and the poor tassel flower, that once lay withered and cast away on a heap of rubbish in a narrow, dark street._

_2:09 AM_

_Did you like it?_

_2:10 AM_

_I bet you did._

_2:10 AM_

_The angel _was_ Rowan._

_2:11 AM_

_Poor Rowan got tired of everything. He was so weak. He had to use crutches._

_2:11 AM_

_Are you weak, Rory? Tired of everything? … Tired of everything the Doctor gives you?_

_2:11 AM_

_Don't die, Rory. Don't get too tired. Okay?_

_2:12 AM_

_Mm. Well._

_2:12 AM_

_I best be off. I'll see you~_

When Rory saw the Doctor's name, his heart skipped a beat. He wasn't sure if he was being fooled around with or… or what. His eyes scanned the texts again, but that just gives him even more questions. Questions that would appear unanswered until Rory did something about it.

Hand shaking, Rory called the unknown texter. _Ring, ring! Ring! Ring!_ The rings continued to alarm through Rory's end, but nobody answered. He received a message that the number he was calling was currently unavailable. With a shake of his head, the male let out a frustrated sigh and ended the call.

He wasn't sure what to believe. This person that gave him a flood of texts was unreachable and he wanted answers. This person _knew_ about the Doctor.

Then it hit him.

The story? The advice? The slight differences in the story? The use of the word 'anywho'? It was that Richard guy. The one that recorded a video with Amy's phone. Richard Brook knew about them. Knew about the Doctor. Knew what the Doctor was like. Richard seemed to know about both of the Doctor's companions. And it gave Rory goosebumps at the sheer realization of it. Every second he thought about it, Rory felt as if something was wrong. Something was going to happen. Something bad.

Momentarily pushing his fright away, Rory got up from his bed and rushed out of his room, and into Amy's room. "Hey, Amy. Amy!" He shook her lightly at first, but when she didn't come to, Rory pushed her off the bed. He heard her shout in anger when she hit the floor, calling out his name.

"Oi! What was that for, you numpty?" Amy, in her duck pajamas, yelled out, rubbing the side of her arm with a grumble. She crawled back onto the bed and punched at Rory's arm, which he winced at. "What are you doing up this early? It's only… a little past 7. You could've woken me up in a couple of hours."

He shook his head, going back to his messages and sliding the cellular device into Amy's hand. "Read the messages."

After she finished reading the texts, Amy gave Rory a look. "Who is this?" When Rory shrugged, Amy took a second glance at the messages in Rory's phone. "Why'd he send you a story?" Again, she saw Rory shrug, but she knew that he had an idea. "Rory…" She placed her free hand on Rory's shoulder, now fixating her eyes on him. "Look at me," she commanded, and when Rory did, she said, "this guy… what do you think he's up to?"

Smacking his lips, Rory heaved out a light sigh and closed his eyes shut. "Um, I-I think he's Richard. I think… I think he knows about the Doctor. I don't know _what_ he's up to, but…" He didn't bother ending the sentence and let out another sigh; this time, it was heavy. "There's something up. I know it. We need to tell him." Opening his eyes, he locked his gaze on Amy and she gave him a firm nod. "Okay…?"

"Okay."

"Okay." He gave her a small peck on the tip of her nose and stroked her hair, bringing her close to him.

Amy and Rory told the Doctor about Richard Brook and the humans asked what kind of relationship he and Richard had. The Doctor was reluctant in saying anything and didn't really say much, but said that it was no big deal. He told them not to worry, but Rory couldn't help but think that something was still wrong. Whatever that something was, the Doctor didn't feel as if he needed to share the information to his companions. Even so, Rory intended to find out about this mystery. He wouldn't get his answers until months later.


	7. Who Do You Think You Are?

Panting.

Sweating.

Stomping cluttering over the sound of patient footsteps.

Frantic shouting for each other's names.

They were running. That's what they did. They always ran. And it was the Doctor's fault. Or at least, he made some kind of contribution to it.

There were cameras everywhere. The hallways were empty. Everything was dark. The lights were out. And it was scary as hell.

The Doctor and his companions were treading on private property they shouldn't have stepped on. He couldn't find them. He couldn't find Amy and Rory. They split, each of them on their own path around the building. The Doctor thought it would have been fun, trespassing in a building that wasn't meant for the public and taking their own tour, with him making commentaries on how old the walls were and that there weren't enough hidden doors or routes around. Amy thought it would have been even more fun if they were to look around for such things, so all three of them took their own path.

But now? Now everything was strange. The lights went out and a scraping sound made itself known. The darkened place gave several reactions. The Doctor heard Amy shriek and heard Rory call out for her. As for the Time Lord, he stayed calm. Or at least, as an exterior. As for the noise, Amy started shouting for both the Doctor and Rory. Panic rose as the noise kept an inconsistent flow. It would make a sharp screech, then a short thump, as if a hand or the hilt of a gun banged against the wall. Then silence. Silence would occupy the atmosphere, leaving the Doctor even more frightened. Then another thump or another scraping sound.

"Amy!" The Doctor yelled out, his hands on the walls beside him, letting them guide him in the dark. He heard Amy's respond, his name, and started running to the source, his hands off the walls. "Amy! Where's Rory?" He took a sharp turn and twitched his ears when he heard footsteps. "Amy? Is that you?" The heroic alien called out again and when Amy confirmed it, he let out a short laugh, full of relief. "Amy, Amy! Tell me, where's Rory? Is he with you?" Before he could get a response from her, he felt a mass hit him. The Doctor fell to the ground, landing on his side. It took him a few seconds to recover from the impact from the floor and when he did, the Doctor groped around to find the mass that he bumped into. "Amy?"

"No. It's… ow… ugh, damn," a male voice, Rory's voice, emitted; strained. "It's me." Rory felt a hand reach for his arm and he quickly jerked away from it. "Doctor, was that you?" When he heard the Doctor say that it was, he grunted, getting up. "God. I'm glad to meet you. Where's Amy?"

The Doctor got up, his hands clinging to the nearest wall to bring him up. "I-I don't know. Amy?" He started to drift away from Rory.

"Doctor?"

"Amy! Amy! Where are you?" It was Rory that asked. His concern for Amy turned into fright when his ears registered the scraping sound. And it crept closer. It was louder. And he didn't like it at all. "Doctor, it's getting closer." Rory whispered, moving his hands in front of him to feel where the Doctor was at. Thankfully, he found him, just a few feet away. Clutching onto the fabric of the Doctor's tweed, he called out once more. "Amy! We're coming to get you!"

The Doctor took the first step in the pursuit to find Amy. He still felt Rory hold onto his jacket and he was glad that Rory was still behind him. He didn't want to lose him. Not again. "Amy! Amy!" Hearing another call from Amy, significantly closer than last time, he knew he was on the right track. "Come on!" He commanded Rory as he continued sprinting. That is, until he slammed against a wall. A groan ached from his throat and Rory followed after, squishing the Doctor against the wall even more. "Rory!"

"S-Sorry!" Rory said, pulling away from the Doctor, but still holding onto his clothing. "Is it a dead end?" He asked, but before he gave the Doctor a moment to reply, Rory navigated to his right, his free hand feeling at another wall. "No. Just a corner. Hurry!" It was his turn to guide the Doctor. "Amy?"

"Rory?" A croaky pitch from Amy. She could hear them. Hear their panting and their footsteps. She knew she was getting closer. Turning a corner, she started to decrease her speed, trying to catch her breath as she slowed down. "Rory! Doctor!"

They were so close. So _damn_ close. And yet, they couldn't find each other. The sound diminished and even though it was gone, it still struck fear in the three of them.

All of them kept running, still calling for each other. And then, with another crash, Amy found her boys. She fell to the floor rather harshly, but Rory abandoned his grasp on the Doctor and helped her up. She felt his arms wrap around her, refusing to let go. Rory was resting his forehead on her shoulder, giving out little mumbles. Mainly of relief. "Rory, Rory. It's okay. I'm here." She reassured him, bringing her own arms around his body and rubbing his back in tiny circles. She continued this until something flickered in the distance. A flash of light. Then another. And then another. Soon, a row of lights were brightly illuminated, showering the three trespassers with both light and the ability to see. Glancing over to check on the Doctor, she brought a smile, knowing that he was safe. She saw that his hair was messy and that there was a forming bruise on his cheek. "What happened?"

"Me? I slammed into a wall. And Rory. And another wall… yeah, a bit of running into things this evening," the Doctor commented, letting out a nervous chuckle as he combed his fingers through his hair. He looked around the now lit hallway. "We should get out of here. I think it's about time, yeah?" Rory and Amy agreed. Once again, he was the first to make the first step and started working backwards, returning to the corner he had previously turned. "Might take a while."

After some time, maybe 40 minutes or so, they found the entrance of the building. There was only one thing. Someone was blocking the way. Brown eyes that could well be mistaken for being black. Gelled hair. Not quite lean figure, but not really muscular either. Just a normal build. And that build was covered in a suit, trousers, and a pair of matching shoes. In one hand, he was holding a piece of metal, one side looked like as if he was torn off from a machine. Another thing. They all knew him. The Doctor, Rory, and Amy. It was James Moriarty that blocked their path. "Hi!" Moriarty said in a singsong tone, stretching the word out.

"That's him. That's Richard Brook." Amy whispered through clenched teeth. She held onto Rory's hand, eyeing Moriarty.

Rage filled in the Doctor's system. _This_ was Richard Brook. He finally met him. After all these years, the Doctor had found his stalker. Taking a step forward, he pointed accusingly at Moriarty. "You!" He barked aloud, anger on his face and his pitch. "You stop it! Stop it right now! You-"

"Stop what?" Moriarty questioned in a high-pitched tone.

"This… this game! You've been doing this for far too long!" The Doctor spat, risking yet another step toward the man. "Ever since Martha! Ever sin-"

The Doctor was cut off, again by Moriarty. "No, no. There was one more. Before her."

Blinking, dumbfounded at first, the Doctor soon realized. "Rose," he said, his anger sucked from his voice and was now replaced by nostalgia. Still, it wasn't for long that he got back on track. "You need to stop, Richard!"

"Why should I? Because you said so? That won't stop me. I can do whatever I want. You don't need to punish me like some child." Moriarty tilted his head forward, lowering it, then brought his head back up in a reptilian-like manner. "Oh, Doctor. I won't stop. I won't ever stop. Not for what you did to me." He narrowed his eyes and they shone with fiery passion.

The Doctor, now confused, took a small step back. He still had his eyes locked on Moriarty, never wavering them. Thoughts rushed in his head and he was trying to make sense out of what Moriarty said. He opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it when he couldn't find the words to shape a sentence. Finally, after some time of waiting from both his companions and Moriarty, he said, "who are you?"

Moriarty giggled, letting the piece of metal drop to the floor with an echoing _clang_. He stuffed both his hands into his trouser pockets, taking a step to the Doctor. "Think. _Think_."

"It's Richard. That's his name." It was Amy. She was given looks by all three men. Rory, shaking his head, knowing that Amy was wrong. She moved her eyes to catch a glimpse at the Doctor. She couldn't read his mind. Then, to Moriarty. She was addressed with a sly smile from him that made her shudder.

"That's what he calls himself. An alias. Like 'the Doctor'." Rory pointed out, which he received a perplexed look from Amy. "I don't think a storyteller would stalk people using his real name," he saw the redhead accept his sentence as a fact by giving him a nod. "Right, 'Richard'?"

Moriarty's smile grew and when he took a hand out of his pocket, he wagged a finger faintly at Rory. "Smart kid."

The Doctor kept quiet all this time, realizing that all the research he did was pointless. 'Richard Brook' was just a name to hide this man's true identity. He clenched his jaw, still keeping his eyes on his enemy. "Who are you?" The alien repeated.

It didn't take too long for Moriarty to reply. "Your worst nightmare."

Quite possibly ignoring Moriarty's comment, the Doctor asked, "why are you doing this?" When he heard Moriarty ignore _his _question, wondering if he wanted to hear a story, the Doctor snapped, "answer me! Why are you doing this?"

"I won't answer until you agree."

With a sigh, the Doctor agreed to it.

"Do you know of the story of Beowulf?" Moriarty took another step closer to the Doctor. Then another. A slow, decisive saunter followed by. When he was just inches away from the Doctor, his eyes shone with delight. A bit of an insane kind of delight. So happy to see him. So happy to confront him. So madly happy. Moriarty circled around the Doctor and noticed that the Doctor did the same, staying in the same spot but turning to keep his eyes fixated on him. The Doctor gave Moriarty a nod. "The man that was very heroic. He slew a monster named Grendel. And Grendel's mother. Became king. Then slew a dragon, but died from the dragon's attacks," Moriarty expressed a tutting noise, shaking his head. He stopped circling around the Doctor and resumed, "Beowulf was such a hero. Such a vain hero. He made himself sound like he was larger than life. He made everything so wonderful! And so difficult at the same time." Again, another tut-tut. "And he had friends. Well, warriors to help him. They worshipped him. They would have done everything for him."

The Doctor's face went blank. He wasn't quite sure where Moriarty was going with this and all he wanted to know was the truth. The absolute truth. And so, he had to endure this.

"Beowulf was brave. Fearless. Always wanting to do things the righteous way. He was charming, even I have to admit. That's why people liked him. Maybe acknowledging him as a god or something." Moriarty let out a gruff chuckle. "You're charming, Doctor. Brave. Fearless. People like you. A lot of people like you. That's why you have those friends of yours." He pointed at Rory and Amy, then brought his finger to the Doctor, poking the man in the tweed jacket at the shoulder. "But Beowulf wasn't a god. He was just a warrior; a hero. And unlike gods, Beowulf experienced death. Treasure was buried with him. His pyre was probably the hugest of all funeral fires. That shows a lot. How many people liked him and admired him." Smacking his lips, Moriarty trailed his finger up to the Doctor's neck. He felt the Doctor tighten his neck muscles. "You're not a god, Doctor. You say that you are, but you're nothing but a hero. A prideful hero who wants to be _adored_. But you don't… you don't get to be adored by others just by asking for him. You have to earn it. You certainly haven't earned my admiration."

It hit him like a splash of ice-cold water. Jolting from his slight trance from Moriarty's words, the Doctor stepped back. "Jimmy." He whispered, almost inaudible. The Doctor saw Moriarty's smile soften and eventually turning into a frown. "Jim, is that you?" He called out, his voice just a teeny bit louder.

Moriarty tilted his head to the left, his frown still permanent. "That's not my name."

"That's what you wanted me to call you as," the Doctor retorted.

"Well, I'm telling you that I don't want to be called that…" A short pause. "Don't you see, Doctor? You left me. You broke your promise. You've broken _all_ your promises. Now you're back." A guffaw bubbled out as Moriarty broke eye contact with the Doctor for a few seconds. He couldn't help but laugh. It was so funny. Or at least, to him. "Did you expect me to be fine with it? … you don't get to get me back. You don't deserve me. In fact, you don't deserve your pets, either." He looked back to Amy and Rory, then brought a wave of his hand to them. Returning his attention to the Doctor, he resumed, "you're a murderer, a jack of hearts, and a liar. You don't deserve _anyone_."

Silence.

Sharp silence.

Until Moriarty continued with his speech. "Why don't you just kill yourself? You did say you were the last of your kind. After all, you killed them. Oh, just kill yourself. It'll be easier." Moriarty teased, recalling sentences the Doctor told him years ago.

Before the Doctor could say anything, Rory interrupted. "Doctor, he's just playing with you. Come on, let's get out of here." He took a step forward, Amy still attached to him, and proceeded to grab at the Doctor's arm. Rory stepped closer to the entrance doors, but was stopped by the stiff mass he latched his hand on. "Doctor. Come on."

"Are you all right?" Amy questioned, concern flowing from her voice and face. "Let's go. He's not worth it." She would've backed the Doctor up and yelled at Moriarty, but she didn't want to make things even more worse than it already was.

It took a large amount of time for the Doctor to register the pleas from his companions. "U-Uh… yeah. Yeah. I'm okay, I'm okay."

"Doctor." Moriarty raised his eyebrows as he called out for him, wanting the Time Lord to focus back at him.

"Jimmy," the Doctor replied, expressing a strange type of fondness with each syllable.

He rolled his eyes. "_Doctor_."

Clearing his throat, the Doctor corrected himself, letting out a short 'James' expel from his mouth. He felt Rory tug at his arm, but he didn't react to it. Just once, just this once, he wanted to bring his full attention to James Moriarty. "I… I wished I could've helped."

"Funny," Moriarty started. "Considering you can't even help yourself. You have to make all these jokes and do silly, outrageous things. If you didn't, you'd suffer from all the blood on your hands. And you'd be dead. I'd love to see you dead, Doctor. Your lifeless body. That would be my greatest wish." He saw the Doctor's eyes water. He knew he had won. Oh, he knew.

"Shut up!" Amy fiercely shouted, stomping toward Moriarty. She'd had enough. She couldn't just stand there and listen to all these horrifying things about her raggedy man. "You don't know about the Doctor! You know nothing! You don't-"

"Amy, Amy… Amy, please. Stop, please," the Doctor pleaded, shaking his head.

The young woman, biting her lip from preventing herself to verbally attack Moriarty, obeyed him. Though, her anger wasn't ceasing. She kept a menacing look toward Moriarty, who seemed to pay absolutely no attention to her.

"I'm sorry, James. Really. I am." the Doctor gulped thickly. So human for someone who wasn't. Who couldn't have been no matter how hard he tried. He blinked his eyes, letting a few tears race down his cheeks. It was so unlike him. He shouldn't be crying. But… he was. Because that little boy he met years ago morphed into this… this monster. A monster that harbored hatred for him.

Moriarty scoffed. "I don't need your apologies. It's too late."

"Come on," Rory said again, now by the doors. He gestured for both the Doctor and Amy to follow him. It was Amy who went to his side first. Her anger still wasn't gone and he acknowledged it. Rory gave her a comforting kiss on the lips. "Doctor, let's go."

The Doctor exhaled deeply. "Yeah, bye." He moved away from Moriarty and reunited with his friends, exiting the building.

"Tick, tock. I'll wait for you to crumble. Tick, tock. It will happen soon," Moriarty teased once again, waving farewell to the Doctor.

Hearing him, Amy, filled with even more anger than before, shrieked, "shut up! Just shut up!" She would've continued, but Rory told her to forget about him, saying that he wasn't worth it.

"Vicious. I like it."

She grumbled rather loudly. Though, with each step away from Moriarty and the building, her displeasure settled down. Rory kept her close, rubbing her shoulder and peppering her temple with tiny kisses.

"Who was that, Doctor?" Rory asked, and when he heard Amy let out another grumble, he told her to let it go once again.

The Doctor, reluctant at first, spoke, "he was a friend. I told him I would take him on adventures. Told him to stay home while I find the TARDIS and bring it back to his place. Um, it took a while. I came back, but nobody was there." He wanted to keep things brief, but he couldn't stop himself from babbling about it. He just needed to let it out. Let it all out. "Found out that I came back years later. Kind of like Amy's case. And, I guess, he… um, he tried scaring my other friends." The memory of finding Moriarty's video with Martha popped into his head. "Sorry about… what he did."

Amy looked at him, but couldn't see part of his face for he lowered his head. "It's okay, Doctor. He won't be bothering you soon. Not with us. Right, Rory?" She tried to lighten the situation up by nudging both Rory and the Doctor. She heard Rory bring a chuckle and said a short 'yeah'. "See? We've got your back, Doctor. He won't bother you. I promise."

The Doctor brought his head up, looking at Amy. A genuine smile crawled on his face and nodded. "Thank you."

The rest of the walk was full of silence. They managed to find the TARDIS and the Doctor seemed to have recovered from the recent confrontation and bounced around the interior of the ship, eager to know where the two humans wanted to go next. It was over. All he could focus on now were upcoming adventures for him and his companions.

Still, even if it was over, the Doctor couldn't help but think of what would happen if he met Moriarty just in time. Maybe things would have been better? He wouldn't know. But one thing that the Doctor does know was that James Moriarty detested him. He couldn't change that. The Doctor might as well accept it and move on.

And that's what he did.


	8. Satisfied

It had been a while. He hadn't seen the Doctor. The cameras didn't count, obviously. Moriarty kept an eye on him, but not as frequent as he previously had. It just… it didn't feel like an obligation anymore. Because… he won. Moriarty _won_.

He saw the Doctor finally crack in front of him. He witnessed this almighty and ancient being crumble with his own eyes. Apologize to _him_, a human. A no-good, fleshy, unimportant human. The Doctor, a man who would take in new friends from all parts of the world, wanted him back. But not because he felt like he needed to, but because he found out that he ruined Moriarty's past. And his hope. The Doctor brought hope and snatched it away from him. He wanted to rebuild h is potential relationship with Moriarty. Change it. Give Moriarty the adventures he waited for. But it was too late.

Moriarty figured the Time Lord would continue on his merry way and invite the Ponds to more trips, but it didn't happen. For a week, the Doctor caged himself into the TARDIS, leaving the box in the streets of London. Possibly to grieve over Moriarty? Most likely. Or, that was what Moriarty wanted to believe.

Still. The Time Lord, after his isolation, kept that certain look. The look he addressed to Moriarty the day they met again. Full of loss, regret, and yearning. The Doctor couldn't hide it any longer. And the thing that Moriarty loved the most? The face, that _look_, it wasn't made for Moriarty. It was made for all the friends the Doctor lost or disappointed. Moriarty was just the one that cut the thread. The final act.

It pleased him. It may not have been the result he wanted, but Moriarty didn't mind. He was changeable. Not only did Moriarty scare - frustrate and confuse, perhaps - the Doctor's past companions, he got to meet his current pets. Invoke uncertainty and anger in them. What else could he have wanted? It was all so brilliantly placed in this little battle of theirs.

And this battle? This game? It wasn't over. It would never be over; not until the Doctor begged for him. Beg him to take him back once more so Moriarty could decline the offer again. Kick him when he's down. Pummel him until he's no more. Moriarty wanted an end; an end he could be satisfied with. Being pleased with his recent accomplishment wasn't going to bring him content for long. So, this game would continue. Until Moriarty won.

Moriarty will win, he was positive. He had become so much stronger and the Doctor grew weak with emotion. He'd resume with the game between him and the Doctor, but Moriarty wanted something new. Something much more lively. That's when Sherlock came to mind.

Though, even when Moriarty arranged his battle with the famous Sherlock Holmes, he kept an eye out for the Doctor. To check up on how he was doing. Make sure the alien wouldn't get too comfortable.

In the end, Moriarty would ruin the Doctor the way the Gallifreyan annihilated him. This was their relationship. It always had been.

The lord who loved too much and the man who destroyed him.


End file.
